The Evolution of Washington and Broad

Earlier this week, I left the office in the evening and stepped out onto Broad Street. As I was locking our door, a family that had been eating at 3 Potato 4, one of our new restaurant tenants, stepped out onto the street as well. The parents were in their mid to late 40s, and the kids were teenagers. I overheard bits of their conversation. The father was describing the area, not as it was, but as he remembered it from his time as a child. He pointed out the shuttered building for sale that had been the old Hub Hobby shop. He did this in a way that made it clear that his children had never been here, not as a destination. As he started into a story, his son interrupted him and asked if they could walk by the bakery before they left.

I was struck by this moment because it is one of the hundred reasons why we built the project at Washington and Broad. This intersection, which has always been a critical crossroads for our great city, had fallen on hard times. The buildings were in disrepair, the street unkempt, even the bus stops didn’t have a place to sit. We saw a different future for this place, one that was focused on helping restore its past as a destination. Some place to go with your family on a Tuesday night. With the help of our extraordinary partners and tenants, we have resurrected four buildings on that corner, and helped spur a renaissance for the wider area.

We do a lot of things at Green Coast, but at their core, they are all about trying to make a safe, exciting, beautiful place where people can come home.